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Pokémon XD^2: The Return of Shadow (PG-13)

Yes, I'm back! I'm back with the sequel to "Pokémon XD: Enigma Shadow." I certainly hope all my faithful readers will come over to this new story, that new readers will join in, and that everyone will enjoy it.

On that note, and without further ado, the time for the curtain to rise on "Pokémon XD^2: The Return of Shadow" is now at hand. Let's get it on!

Chapter Directory
This is a list of links to the beginning of each chapter, plus their titles in both dub and undubbed.

As the sun rose over the Orre Sea, its bright rays shone on a large cruise liner heading for the region. This voyage was quite a newsworthy one; it was the very first ocean liner to head for Orre in the three years after the abduction of the S.S. Libra by the criminal organization Cipher. The S.S. Athena was a beautiful vessel indeed. Its white hull was polished to a brilliant luster that sparkled as the water lapped at it. The inside of the ship was just as beautiful as the outside---newspapers talking about the S.S. Athena in the weeks leading up to its departure from Slateport City in Hoenn all noted that its staterooms were built to four-star hotel standards not to mention that its gorgeous main hall, which connected to the ballroom, the dining room, and the ship's casino, was built with golden walls, marble floor tile and huge crystal chandeliers.

There was something else uniquely exciting about this voyage. All the passengers on board were Pokémon trainers heading for the Orre Region to participate in the Colosseum Challenge circuit. In fact, a number of the sailors working on the ship also carried their Pokémon with them and would gladly engage each other or the passengers in battles.

And that is where our story begins. Rich and Anabel Mistbloom, taking a vacation from Larousse City and its famous Battle Tower for a little rest and relaxation in Orre, are on the S.S. Athena en route to Gateon Port. But of course, with Rich never being one to turn down a challenge (which in turn leaves Anabel with her hands quite full sometimes) we find him in the main hall, about to battle a sailor in a white uniform.

"Go, Pelipper and Crawdaunt!"

The sailor threw two Poké Balls, sending out a white bird with a large yellow bill and a red lobster-like Pokémon with powerful claws.

"Pelipper and Crawdaunt, eh? Go, Alakazam and Blaziken!"

Rich drew two Poké Balls off the belt he was wearing between his sky-blue shirt and sky-blue slacks and threw them. They popped open in bursts of light to release a yellow fox-like creature that held two spoons and a Fire and Fighting Pokémon that was like a large chicken.

As the two teams of Pokémon stared each other down, a young woman dressed in shades of purple and blue to complement her purple hair--this was Anabel--raised her hands in the air.

"This will be a double battle with two Pokémon on each side!" she called, then she let her hands fall. "Begin!"

"Let's make this quick, Alakazam. Thunderpunch!"

Alakazam's fist crackled with electricity, then it lunged at the Pelipper.

"Protect yourself, Pelipper!"

Just before Alakazam's Thunderpunch made contact, Pelipper put up a shield of green light around itself. Alakazam hit the shield and bounced off, doing nothing.

"Your turn, Crawdaunt! Crabhammer!"

Crawdaunt opened its claws wide and rushed towards Blaziken.

"Try and block it with Brick Break if you can!"

Blaziken reared back and shoved its fists forward towards Crawdaunt. The lobster clamped down on Blaziken's arms and swung the Fire and Fighting type over its head, but before it could let go Blaziken had recovered and swung Crawdaunt over its head back. Blaziken then hit Crawdaunt with a powerful punch attack anyway.

"Alakazam, finish Crawdaunt off with another Thunderpunch!"

The sailor couldn't react fast enough. By the time he had opened his mouth to order a Protect, Alakazam had already delivered a blow with its electrified fist to Crawdaunt. The lobster Pokémon fell down, fainted.

"Crawdaunt is unable to battle!" Anabel called.

"Huh......Crawdaunt, return. Pelipper, use Hydro Pump!"

Pelipper took a deep breath, then fired a powerful jet of water out of its bill at Blaziken. Blaziken was caught off guard and got hit critically, fainting.

"Blaziken is now unable to battle!"

"Good work Blaziken, take a rest. Alakazam, let's finish this battle with one more Thunderpunch!"

Alakazam went at Pelipper with fists crackling with voltage again, this time hitting its opponent head-on. Because Pelipper was both a Water type and a Flying type, it took incredible damage and fainted.

"Pelipper is unable to battle! The winner is Rich!"

Without another word, the sailor recalled Pelipper and stormed away. Anabel went up to Rich, hugged him, and gave him a kiss.

"Great show, that was."

"Yeah, but he was weak," Rich replied as he recalled Alakazam.

"This is the captain," a voice on the ship's PA said. "We will be making land at Gateon Port within the hour. Thank you for choosing the S.S. Athena."

"Well. Sounds like we better get our bags together in our room and prepare, eh?"

"Sure, Rich. I've never been to Orre before, so you can imagine how exciting this is for me."

"That's why I chose this vacation. I've not been to Orre in a long time myself, but I decided on this for you."

As they talked, Rich and Anabel walked out of the grand hall toward their room.........

------------------------------------------------------------------

Gateon Port was always an exciting place to be. The harbor town bustled with business, from the merchant ships bringing all kinds of exotic merchandise to the world-famous Krabby Club, which now was an inn as well as a bar and restauraunt. The signature of Gateon--its lighthouse--towered over the other buildings on its own little island just off the mainland.

As the S.S. Athena pulled into port, two large metal bridges had to rotate to make space for it. The ship pulled up to the dock perfectly and a motorized staircase descended to connect the dock to the ship---and soon, Gateon Port was even more busy as all the passengers disembarked.

"So where should we visit first?" Anabel asked.

"We could start here, in Gateon Port."

"No, let's save Gateon for last, since we'll be here to get back on the ship when it leaves anyway."

Rich nodded in agreement, then pulled a travel guide out of his pocket. He unfolded it and the two of them read it over.

"All trainers seeking to participate in the Colosseum Challenge circuit must recieve a pass from Professor Krane at the Pokémon HQ Lab....." Anabel read aloud. "Let's make that our first stop."

"Fine by me. It says there's a Parts Shop in this town that sells desert scooters, so we'll pick one up for traveling around."

Having found themselves in agreement on buying a scooter and traveling around Orre with it, Rich and Anabel ventured to the east side of town. Soon they found the Parts Shop---the fact that it had a large metal sculpture of a scooter on its roof gave it away---and went in. Right inside was the front desk, which was being worked by an old man in an orange shirt.

"Hi, are you the one we ask for to buy things here?" Rich asked.

"Oh, of course. Name's Makan. I run this shop. What can I do for you today?"

"We'd like to see about buying a scooter," Anabel answered to Makan.

"That's doable. We have several different models available, depending on what you plan to use it for."

"My wife and I came here on vacation, and we'd like something that can take us all around the Orre Region."

"Oh? Sure, that would be our two-person Hover Scooter then. Let me just make sure we have one in stock, OK?" Rich and Anabel nodded. "This will just take a moment. Perr! PERR!!"

"What, Grandpa?" a voice said from up the staircase inside the shop.

"Perr, go out back and find a Hover Scooter of the two-person model, alright? We've got some customers who want one."

A lanky young man wearing a striped shirt and a red knit cap came down the stairs.

"We have those, I know for sure. I just checked a few hours ago, Grandpa......Oh?" Perr had noticed Rich and Anabel, and seemed surprised. "Are you two maybe Rich and Anabel? The ones who beat down Enigma Shadow a year ago?"

"That's us," Anabel confirmed. "You've heard of us, I guess."

"Heard of you? Believe it or not, you've got quite a following in this region. The ONBS was covering your heroics the whole time!"

"ONBS........"

"That stands for Orre News Broadcasting Service. They formed eight years ago during the very first Shadow Incident as a group of kids dedicated to helping take down Cipher. A short time later the Kids' Grid turned into ONBS, dedicated to broadcasting the unvarnished truth with the goal of preventing Cipher from rising again."

"That's nice and all, Perr....." Makan interrupted, "but have you forgotten that they are paying customers?"

Perr left through the back of the shop. Makan, meanwhile, had an exasperated look on his face.

"You can imagine what I've got to go through to keep him in line. Eight years ago I operated a Junk Shop in a town called The Under, and Perr used to help me. But then he joined the Kids' Grid and started taking parts from my shop and giving them to the head of the Kids' Grid for their broadcasts."

"I was going to confront him later on once Cipher was defeated, but then ONBS formed.....and the co-chairs of ONBS are the ones he gave parts to! Secc and Nett! So I figured it wasn't worth confronting him if his actions kept Cipher from returning."

As Makan finished up his story, Perr returned through the front door of the shop.

"I've got the scooter you asked for ready out front. Come have a look."

Perr and Makan went outside, Rich and Anabel following close behind. Right there, on the front step of the shop, was a shiny white scooter with hover generators where the wheels would normally be.

"Our finest model," Makan said proudly. "Capable of traveling anywhere in the Orre Region, even in the deep sands of the northeastern desert. Here, get on and give it a quick test ride to see if you like it."

Rich got on first, Anabel on the seat behind him. With a twist of the handlebar, Rich started the scooter. It began hovering, then Rich steered it around a little. Feeling more comfortable, he drove it around in circles a few times, then stopped and got off.

"Here, Anabel. You try it too."

"Thanks!"

Anabel moved forward to the front of the scooter and imitated what Rich had just done. She was even able to steer it in a figure-eight pattern, something Rich could not do.

The path between Gateon Port and the Pokémon HQ Lab was a verdant one running through a forest. Rich and Anabel were driving at a relaxed pace, enjoying the ride.

"Ahhhhhh......" Rich took a deep breath. "Fresh forest air. Larousse might be one of the cleanest cities on the face of this planet but nothing compares to this."

"Keep taking deep breaths like that and you'll inhale a Butterfree."

Rich and Anabel both laughed.......but went silent when they heard something up ahead.

"Give us all your money and you won't get hurt!" a male voice threatened.

"And your Pokémon too!" a female voice added.

"What's going on up there? Rich, hit the gas and see what's happening."

Rich sped the scooter up, and they soon stopped at a chaotic scene. A red-haired woman wearing a light blue jacket, a royal blue shirt and pink shorts was laying on the ground, having been knocked off her scooter by a man and a woman in black armor. Anabel rushed to her aid while Rich confronted the thugs.

"Are you alright?!" Anabel asked in panic as she helped the woman to her feet.

"I'm fine....but help me get away from these people!"

"Just who do you think you are?" the male thug threatened Rich. "We're busy, leave us alone."

"You leave this lady alone, first."

"Don't push your luck," the female crook began threatening as well. "Unless you think you can take us in a battle."

"That's what we'll do! Come on, Anabel, let's give these thugs what for and punish them for bothering this young lady!"

After making sure the woman who was attacked was alright, Anabel rushed to Rich's side.

Clarent and Arlen ran off, then Rich and Anabel turned to the woman they had attacked.

"Thank you for your help," she said gratefully. "My name is Rui. I was just going back to my home after shopping in Gateon Port when those thugs jumped me here."

"Think nothing of it. Anabel and I couldn't have just left you there with them."

"Are you two really the famous Rich and Anabel? The ones who were on the ONBS a lot last year?" Rich and Anabel nodded. "Wow, imagine meeting you here under such circumstances. There's one thing, though....they...they had Shadow Pokémon!"

The reaction from both Rich and Anabel was one of jaw-dropping horror.

"Shadow Pokémon?!?!!"

"What?!!! Rich....NO! Not again....."

"I'm really sorry to burden you with this," Rui continued, "but I'd appreciate it if you would accompany me to my home. It is the Northwest Orre Ranch just past the Pokémon HQ Lab."

"Sure. Anabel and I were heading that way anyway."

"Thank you. I live there with my husband Wes, the first Snagger of Shadow Pokémon from eight years ago. He'd be the one to talk to about what has happened here."

As all were in agreement, Anabel and Rich got on their scooter, waited for Rui to get back on hers, and then they all started off towards the Northwest Orre Ranch.

Rich and Anabel arrived in Orre but not long into their vacation, trouble occured. After saving Rui from two mysterious thugs, they are now heading to her home to meet her husband, the first Snagger of Shadow Pokémon. Could there be even more Shadow Pokémon and evil churning beneath Orre's surface?

END of PROLOGUE

Last edited by The Great Butler; 23rd August 2006 at 12:53 AM.

(Banner by Matori)Beyond all ideals, the truth shall set you free...
Most Recent: 19: The Weight of the World (Part 1)
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Wow. First post! The battles are better. The description was amazing. ^_^ The length surprised me for some reason. Because I thought that this was the first chapter. ^_^ Well, I'll be waiting for the first chapter. ^_^

Wow, great work Butler. I am new reader to serebii.net and i must say that i really enjoyed your previous story Pokémon XD: Enigma Shadow, as it had good characters and a good plot. Already this is turning out to be a good story as it had a good epilogue. keep up the great work.

Yay Wes/Rui appearence. Cool start to this. Looking forward to chapter 1 of this and chapter 10 of The Uprise Of Cipher.

Uprise of Cipher might not be up for a while, but I will work on this.

Wow. First post! The battles are better. The description was amazing. ^_^ The length surprised me for some reason. Because I thought that this was the first chapter. ^_^ Well, I'll be waiting for the first chapter. ^_^

I knew I had to improve the description, because I knew it would fail with an overload of dialogue. But amazing? Really?

And evil lurks again! Anyways, good prologue Great Butler! I can see your descripition is getting better. I really cannot say much as it is a prologue. Expect more reviews from me!

My aim was to pick right back up from where I left off with Enigma Shadow's conclusion. I'm glad the description is getting better, perhaps it is helped by the fact Orre's locations are very....how to put this......appealing to the eyes, and the fact that they already have designs in the games.

A formal hello to you. It had a tad bit more description than I last, I noticed. It seems something that is foreign in your writting style though.

And a formal hello to you, too. Foreign? I'm not sure I understand what you mean. Isn't description something that's universal to all fics?

I am one of those people who absolutely love a little bit of humor, not too much, in a story. I can just imagine him gulping air very widely. XD

I thought about putting Beedrill or Venomoth instead but they didn't seem to fit as well as Butterfree. That's my style, a little humor here and there to give some breaks from the serious parts.

I remember when I used those two in the first battle scene of "Serendipity". I have to wonder if the choice of Pokemon was inspired by my story. Maybe not...

Yikes, you're right. I apologize for unwittingly copying your story, would you like for me to change it? I would not mind at all if that's what you wish.

So much for my favorite Pokemon...I was hoping to see more of it, but it probably had nothing to contribute to the story.

That whole battle was really meant to just be an intro to the story, sort of like Ardos's battle with Zook in Gale of Darkness. Of course, though, those two enemies will return---Rui did say they used Shadow Pokémon in the battle, remember?

I can't judge the plot, becuase it is too early, but I'm sure it will have a lot of plot twists to it.

You guess correctly.

I also love the battles. It has realism to it.

I am glad the battles have improved from before. Hopefully I can keep improving even more, that would be nice.

Wow, great work Butler. I am new reader to serebii.net and i must say that i really enjoyed your previous story Pokémon XD: Enigma Shadow, as it had good characters and a good plot. Already this is turning out to be a good story as it had a good epilogue. keep up the great work.

Hello, welcome! I'm always happy to see new fans. Many thanks for your support so far, and do stick around for the rest of this one too.

(Banner by Matori)Beyond all ideals, the truth shall set you free...
Most Recent: 19: The Weight of the World (Part 1)
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No, it's okay. What matters is you didn't copy my style of battling. XD Just because I used two Pokemon doesn't mean you can't.

What I meant by foreign is that you don't have the entire grasp on description, yet.

OK, just wanted to cover my bases just in case.

I have to admit I'm a bit baffled still by the description, but I will readily admit that has always been my weak point in writing. Was when I started Enigma Shadow, was when I finished it, was when I started the sequel, and always will be.

(Banner by Matori)Beyond all ideals, the truth shall set you free...
Most Recent: 19: The Weight of the World (Part 1)
Next: The Weight of the World (Part 2)

Nice beggining Butler, this story looks as promising as Enigma Shadow. One of the outstanding things is the description, it improved a lot. I'm surprised to see that Wes and Rui appear in this story, that makes things more interesting.
looking forward to the next chapter. And as always, Keep It Up!

Having met Rui, we now go on......
----------------------------------------------------------------------

CHAPTER ONE: Evil in Agate

The Northwest Orre Ranch was located in the most verdant corner of the region. Tall trees formed a loose canopy that gave the area a comfortable amount of shade. A large field of grass ringed the ranch, serving the grazing needs of the many wild Miltank and Ponyta living there. As Rich and Anabel pulled up to the ranch house after Rui led them there, a young man with silver hair and wearing a long blue coat rushed out the front door to greet them.

"Rui!" he screamed. "Where were you? What happened?!"

The man helped Rui off her scooter as Rich and Anabel got off theirs.

"Oh, Wes....." Rui answered. "I was attacked by two thugs with Shadow Pokémon. But these two brave people came to my rescue. You might know them."

Wes turned to Rich and Anabel and looked them over.

"Hmmmmm...yes, indeed I do. You're Rich and Anabel, the foes of Enigma Shadow. I saw you two on the ONBS news reports all the time last year. So what exactly happened?"

"Well........Anabel and I were riding from Gateon Port on our way to the Pokémon HQ Lab. About....what was it, about halfway?" Anabel nodded. "About halfway we encountered two thugs dressed in black armor threatening Rui to give them all her money and Pokémon."

"Of course, we couldn't leave her there," Anabel continued, "so we stopped. Rich and I helped Rui up and then we smashed the crooks in a battle. They took off on short order, screaming that they had to report something to someone."

"And they had Shadow Pokémon, you say?"

"Yes, they did. Oh my! I forgot to do formal introductions. Rich, Anabel, this is my husband Wes."

Rich and Anabel shook hands with Wes.

"The pleasure's ours. Please, do come in. We've got plenty of refreshments and food, and we need to talk about what happened right away."

Wes and Rui went inside, so Rich and Anabel followed them. The four sat down at a wooden table in the kitchen, which was surprisingly large and modern for a ranch house. The floor was tiled and shined to a great luster, and all the appliances were twenty-first century technology.

"There was a Shadow Pokémon encounter again....." Wes thought aloud in a grave tone. "This is troubling. We're going to need help to track down those criminals...."

"My father could help," Anabel volunteered. "He gave Rich the Snag Machine we used to stop Enigma Shadow last year."

"Interesting. Are you the daughter of Professor Krane?"

"No, but my father is a professor. His name's Ein."

At the mere mention of Ein's name, Wes and Rui lept from their seats and drew out Poké Balls in preparation for a battle.

"Damn it, Wes! They're Cipher!!!"

"Some heroes you are! Begone! GET OUT!!"

"Oh no! No! No! We aren't Cipher!"

"My father and mother left Cipher and helped us bring Enigma Shadow down! We aren't evil!"

Wes and Rui relaxed a bit.

"Yikes. Rui, that gave me quite a shock."

"Me too. But it seems we'll have to talk to him to get anywhere with this problem."

They all agreed to call Ein for help, so they went to the videophone and dialed his number. Soon, a young man with gray hair who was dressed in a sharp black suit appeared on the screen.

"Steven Stone, Battle Tower."

"Steven, it's Rich."

"Rich! How are you? Did you and Anabel get to Orre yet?"

"Yes. Is Ein there? We need to talk to him right away."

"She's pregnant, isn't she?"

"I am NOT. Just put my father on the line."

Steven chuckled and disappeared from the screen, although his voice could still be heard.

"Hey, Professor! Rich and Anabel are on the phone!"

"Okay! Gimme a second, I'll be right there!"

"Do I look pregnant?" Anabel hissed under her breath to Rich. He shook his head 'no.'

Just at that moment, a man in a white lab coat sporting sharp glasses and slicked back dark blue hair appeared on the screen.

"Heheh. How are you two doing?"

"Anabel and I are fine....but something bad is afoot."

"What? What has happened?"

"Papa, we saw.....them! Two Shadow Pokémon!"

"WHAT!!?! Where are you?"

"Currently the Northwest Orre Ranch," Wes volunteered.

"That...that voice......Wes?!?! It's been a long time!"

"Yes it has," Rui added.

"And Rui too? So just what is going on here?"

"Long story short, Anabel and I were riding from Gateon Port to the Pokémon HQ Lab when we ran into these two thugs. They were completely clad in black armor and were terrorizing Rui when we stepped in and crushed them in a battle. Apparently they had used a Shadow Torkoal and Shadow Vibrava."

"Hmmmm....that's troubling. Maria and Parfrida are still safely behind bars, so I doubt Enigma Shadow has returned. Perhaps they made more Shadow Pokémon than listed in the data Nascour gave me and they're scattered around Orre."

"That's good and all.....but I'll need the Snag Machine again to get them."

"Uh......I can't help you there, Rich. The distance between your present location and Larousse City is much too far for me to transfer it."

"How about Prof. Krane?" Wes suggested. "He does have a Snag Machine."

"There's an idea. Go talk to Prof. Krane and get the Snag Machine from him. Use it to catch any Shadow Pokémon you find, and I'll be here searching for any data I can find. Good luck out there."

Ein hung up, and the screen turned off.

"Well, I guess you'll be on your way," Wes said. "Before you go, let me get your P*DA number so we can contact you with anything we find." Rich gave Wes his P*DA number. "Thank you. I'll get in touch to let Prof. Krane know you're coming."

Rich and Anabel said their goodbyes to Wes and Rui and thanked them for their hospitality, then left. They got on their scooter, turned around, and drove off south towards the Lab.....

------------------------------------------------------------------

It wasn't long until Rich and Anabel reached the Pokémon HQ Lab. The building couldn't be missed---it was large, two stories tall, and had a giant Poké Ball on its roof. They parked the scooter, got off, and started towards the glass double doors at the Lab's entrance. Before they got there, a man in a white lab coat with messy brown hair stepped out and met them.

"Hello! Are you Rich and Anabel?" The two heroes nodded. "I'm Professor Krane. Wes contacted me and told me you were coming."

"Yes. We came here to see about two things---I need to get a pass for the Orre Colosseum Challenge, and I need to get your Snag Machine."

"It's sad that Shadow Pokémon have appeared again. Wes told me everything. I'd be glad to help, but may I show you around the lab first?"

"That's fine. Right, Rich?"

"No problem here."

Krane began to go back inside with Rich and Anabel in tow, but before he got far a young man in a sharp blue outfit rushed out.

Furret jumped onto Ninjask's back, then the bug Pokémon rose to incredible speed and flew right into Blaziken. The combined hit from the two of them caused incredible damage to Blaziken, and it fainted. Rich jumped in shock.

"Blaziken!"

"Blaziken is unable to battle!" Krane called out. "The first round goes to Aferd!"

"So he's going to play it that way......Blaziken, return. Go, Milotic! Tyranitar, hit them both with Rock Slide!"

Tyranitar drilled the ground forcefully with its claws, kicking up a multitude of boulders at Ninjask and Furret. Ninjask took a critical hit and fainted, leaving Furret to fall off and get hit as well.

"Ninjask is unable to battle! This round goes to Rich, and the score is now tied!"

"Ninjask, return! You're good. I should've expected no less from the famous hero. Go, Noctowl! Furret, use Brick Break on Tyranitar!"

Furret dashed at Tyranitar and wound up to swing.

"Counter it, Tyranitar!"

Just as Furret swung, Tyranitar simply caught the Pokémon. Though it still took a strong hit, Tyranitar managed to swing Furret around and toss it, causing critical damage.

"Now Milotic, Surf!"

Milotic formed a giant wave of water and crashed it onto Aferd's team. Furret was overwhelmed and fainted, Noctowl hit but less so.

"Furret is unable to battle! The leader is now Rich!"

"Furret, return........Noctowl, Hypnosis!"

Noctowl locked eyes with Tyranitar. The bird's eyes glowed red, soon Tyranitar's did the same---and it then fell asleep.

"Can't use Tyranitar now......finish it, Milotic! Blizzard!"

Milotic reared back and lauched a blast of ice and wind at Noctowl. Noctowl tried to escape....but failed. It was KO'd.

"Well! I must say I didn't expect to lose like that. With you around, Rich, Orre should stay at peace for a long time!"

Satisfied, Aferd went back into the Lab.

"Good job, Rich!" Krane congratulated. "You have an incredible aptitude for battling. No wonder Enigma Shadow fell to you. Come inside, I have something to show you."

Rich and Anabel followed Krane into the Lab. It was a very clean, organized place--the gray floors and fixtures were all neatly polished and positioned. Krane led them to a door on the left side of the room, which led into a small office. The office had a whiteboard with formulas written on it, several bookcases, and a strange cylinder-like case against the wall. There were also stairs to the Lab's basement.

"Wait here a minute," Krane said before disappearing into the basement. He returned several minutes later with some clothing. "You two aren't going to last long in the rough parts of Orre looking as you do. I've gotten some new clothes for you, I'll step out while you change."

Krane put the clothes down, left the room, and closed the door. Rich and Anabel quickly changed out of their old clothes and put on the new ones---Rich's was a black buttoned vest with dark red slacks and a black cowboy hat, Anabel's a blouse and pants cutting off at the ankle of similar colors. The colors of their hair clashed with the new clothes, but they rather liked the outfits anyway. Krane came back in after a few more minutes.

"There. You look good, and you'll be able to get along in the rough corners of Orre now. Lots of cowboys and roughnecks run around in the desert areas, and they would've eaten you alive if you wore your old clothes. Now I have something more for you, Rich."

"What is it?"

"Come over and see."

Krane lifted the top of the cylindrical case off and took out two machines---a headset-like device and a Snag Machine just like Ein's. Rich took off his hat, put on the headset, and replaced the hat, then put the Snag Machine on his left arm like before.

"Ahhh......this feels familiar."

"You're already familiar with the Snag Machine, I'm sure. The headset is a device I invented called the Aura Reader. It will activate and show you the black aura surrounding a Shadow Pokémon when you encounter one."

"Very handy, Rich. Now I won't have to use that Shadow Scope any more."

"True. Thank you for the equipment, Professor."

"You're very welcome. I have something I'd like for you to help me with, too. Please come with me downstairs."

Krane led Rich and Anabel down the stairs into the basement. Several metal lockers were against the wall, and in front of them was a large glowing circle with two smaller glowing circles next to it. A scientist stood at the controls of the machine, and a beautiful blonde woman dressed in a blue shirt and gray shorts was just stepping off of the circle on the left-hand size of the large circle. Krane walked over to the scientist.

"So how did it go?"

"The system's working just fine, Professor."

"How about you? Was your experience worthwhile?"

"Yes, it was," the woman answered. "It has opened my eyes to new types of battling strategy. I must go and analyze my results at once."

The woman approached the stairs, but stopped when she saw Rich and Anabel.

"Hmmm? Haven't I seen you two somewhere before?"

Krane rushed up to them.

"Oh dear, I'm so sorry! Let me explain what's going on. Rich, Anabel, this is Malin, a trainer who stopped by to help me test an invention of mine."

"Rich and Anabel......the pleasure is mine. I'd really love to chat, but I must be off for home now."

Malin went up the stairs and left.

"What was she testing, exactly?" Anabel asked.

"My new inventon. It is an upgraded Battle Sim System, able to create holograms of any species of Pokémon for virtual battles. I have been developing it for years, and it has finally been completed. Please, I invite you to take a virtual training battle on it."

"Fine, I'll do it!"

Rich stepped onto the circle that Malin had been on.

"Fire it up! Two on two match!"

The scientist flipped some switches, then a hologram of a male trainer who looked a lot like Aferd appeared.

"I'm glad! That's the best honor a scientist can receive, praise of his inventions. I'm working on getting the upgraded system in the Realgam Tower. Can I have your P*DA number so I can contact you in the future?"

Rich gave Krane the P*DA number.

"Thank you. I'll give you a call if I have new information. For now you should head to Agate Village and talk to its master, Eagun, about the Shadow Pokémon you saw. Agate's not far from here, head to the southeast. You can't miss it."

"Thanks! Come on Rich, let's hit the road."

"Wait!! Rich, I forgot to give you this!" Krane handed Rich a folder-like device with a Poké Ball carved into its cover. "That's your Colosseum Challenge pass. When you win a knockout challenge at a Colosseum for the first time, you'll receive an emblem for your victory. Amass them all and you can enter the championship challenge at the Orre Colosseum."

"Thank you, Professor. Now, Anabel, we're ready to go!"

Rich and Anabel are now heading to Agate Village after meeting Krane and Wes. What awaits them there? Find out in the next part of chapter one! Stay tuned!

Last edited by The Great Butler; 23rd April 2006 at 8:45 PM.

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And the King of all Scizor returns! I'm glad you got a sequel. Let me guess: those two were Shadow Peons serving under the new Enigma Shadow head, who will seem like a friend at the start, and turn into the final boss. And yet again, congrats!

And the King of all Scizor returns! I'm glad you got a sequel. Let me guess: those two were Shadow Peons serving under the new Enigma Shadow head, who will seem like a friend at the start, and turn into the final boss. And yet again, congrats!

Yes, but can you guess what was unique about them? Spoiler:

One of them was the very first female Shadow Peon. All the peons in Enigma Shadow were male.

And yes, you will be surprised. Majorly.

Well assuming the title for this chapter is Evil in Agate I'm guessing there is going to b eshadow pokemon in Agate? Well great job here Bulter.

You assume correctly. I couldn't write it all in one segment, so the events in Agate will be posted seperately.

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Nice first part of the chapter Butler. Seems that when Anabel mentioned Ein Wes and Rui jumped in surprise, well, in battle. Looking forward to the next part, to see how Agate gets attacked this time. I'm surprised that Michael didn't appear at the lab, I was looking forward for him. I would like to start to guess who's the boss of Enigma Shadow, but It's very early to start guessing.
Keep It Up!

I enjoyed this a lot. I am expecting those plot twists to come soon, if some didn't happen already. I'm terrible at overlooking things.

Tall trees formed a loose canopy that gave the area a comfortable amount of shade.

Tyranitar drilled the ground forcefully with its claws, kicking up a multitude of boulders at Ninjask and Furret.

Here is some examples of elegant description, as I like to call it. I never saw that before in your writting. You are getting a grasp on description at a wonderous pace.

Krane led them to a door on the left side of the room, which led into a small office. The office had a whiteboard with formulas written on it, several bookcases, and a strange cylinder-like case against the wall.

Hey Great Butler! Another great chapter! Okay, here are some highlights:

Yes. Is Ein there? We need to talk to him right away."

"She's pregnant, isn't she?"

Like lightkeeper said, it is priceless. That made me laugh quite a bit.

"I'm glad! That's the best honor a scientist can recieve, praise of his inventions. I'm working on getting the upgraded system in the Realgam Tower. Can I have your P*DA number so I can contact you in the future?"

"Wait!! Rich, I forgot to give you this!" Krane handed Rich a folder-like device with a Poké Ball carved into its cover. "That's your Colosseum Challenge pass. When you win a knockout challenge at a Colosseum for the first time, you'll recieve an emblem for your victory. Amass them all and you can enter the championship challenge at the Orre Colosseum."

In both of these quotes, receive is spelled wrong. (Well, according to my computer. I save it into my computer and read it).

Also, I liked the virtual battling part. Maybe we will see more of those soon?

Aww, now you really don't have to go that far.....I'm trying to sound modest but I can't anymore, so thanks!

I'm so glad this started up again! And now its in Orre which is one of my favorite regions! Your description has gotten so much better! Will Rich use the shell flute that Lugia gave him?

I can't spoil that yet.

ROFL!!!!! Classic Butler Comedy!

I had to do it. I just had to.

I've come up with a new idea. As a teaser at the end of each chapter, I'll post the title of the next---as if it were a Japanese episode. So the one I'm working on now would be "Agate Village! Shadow Pokémon Appear!!" for example.

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